Undercover Accomplice. Carol Ericson

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       Chapter Two

      The look on Sue’s face shifted from shock to disbelief, to horror, to pain and to a whole bunch of other stuff he couldn’t figure out. And that had been his problem with Sue Chandler all along—he’d never been able to figure her out.

      Those luscious lips finally formed a word, just one. “You.”

      He spread his arms wide. “In the flesh. Did you expect me to leave you in the gutter, like you left me?”

      “As I recall, it was a luxury hotel.” She patted the pillow next to her. “Somewhat like this one—and all I did was check out.”

      “Details, details.”

      She pointed at him. “Your towel is slipping. Not interested in seeing that package—again.”

      The years hadn’t softened Sue Chandler one bit. He held up one finger. “Give me a second.”

      As Sue turned her tight face away, he crossed the room to his suitcase, tugged a pair of briefs from an inside pocket, dropped his towel and pulled on his underwear.

      “There.” He turned toward the bed. “Decent.”

      Her gaze flicked over his body, making him hot and hard, as only Sue Chandler could do with one look from her dark eyes.

      The twist of her lips told him she’d noticed the effect she had on him.

      “Maybe not decent enough.” He yanked open a dresser drawer and pulled out some jeans. He stepped into them, feeling less cocky under Sue’s unrelenting stare, but he had the upper hand for once.

      “Now, are you going to tell me what you were doing last night stumbling along the streets of DC close to midnight?”

      “I live here.” Her jaw hardened. “What are you doing here and how did you happen to find me?”

      “You’re not exactly hard to find. You work for the CIA and live in DC, and I knew you weren’t on assignment, not after…”

      “You know about my kidnapping?” She drew her knees to her chest beneath the sheets, clasping her arms around her legs.

      “Several special forces knew about it and were actively planning your rescue.” He tilted his head to the side. “But you didn’t need rescuing.”

      “Don’t go throwing any parades. The kidnappers were not that bright.” She blinked. “Is that why you’re here? Have you been following me?”

      “Whoa, wait.” He tossed his towel onto the foot of the bed. “I followed you from your place to the bar last night. That’s it. I just arrived yesterday.”

      She sank back against the stacked pillows. “Why’d you follow me? Are you here on official duty, or something? I’ve already been debriefed by the Agency.”

      “Official duty? Really? What would a Delta Force soldier have to do with the kidnapping of a CIA agent?”

      “Don’t try that ‘Who, me?’ stuff with me, Mancini. You didn’t seek me out to profess your undying love. You had three years to do that—and not a peep.”

      He reached into the closet and jerked a shirt from a hanger, leaving it swinging wildly. “You’re not gonna pin that on me. I got the message loud and clear that you were moving on. Did you expect me to chase after you?”

      Sue opened her mouth and then snapped it shut. Then her eyes widened and she gathered the covers around her body. “I’m naked. How did I get naked?”

      “I took your clothes off—sorry.” He gestured to a pile of clothing in the corner of the room. “Yours were dirty. I didn’t think it was sanitary to put you to bed in filthy clothes.”

      “How thoughtful.” She snorted. “I fell on the sidewalk. I’m sure you could’ve brushed the dirt from my slacks and left my underwear alone.”

      He cleared his throat. “You vomited all over yourself when I got you to the room.”

      “Oh my God.” She covered her mouth with both hands. “I don’t know what happened last night. I—I apologize.”

      “Nothing I haven’t handled hundreds of times before with my buddies. I’m sure we can send your clothes to the hotel’s laundry or dry cleaning. I already cleaned off your boots and jacket.”

      “I don’t know what to say. I’m embarrassed. I’m not sure what came over me. I did have a lot of wine last night, but I’ve never felt that way before.”

      “I’m thinking the fact that you upchucked saved you.”

      “Saved me from what?”

      “Whatever was in your system.”

      “You mean besides the alcohol?” She twisted a lock of dark brown hair around her finger, not looking surprised at all. “What do you know? Why are you here in DC?”

      He swallowed against his dry throat. He had to concentrate, but remembering Sue naked in bed had his thoughts scrambled.

      Should he pretend he was here for her instead of trying to explain the real reason? He met those dark, shimmering eyes that seemed to see into his very soul. He couldn’t lie to Sue—not that she’d believe him, anyway.

      “I got a message from Major Denver.”

      “Major Rex Denver? AWOL Delta Force commander?”

      “You know as well as I do that he isn’t and never has been working with any terrorist organization against the US government. One of your own translators proved the emails she’d received implicating him were phony.”

      “I’ve heard all the stories, but if he’s innocent, why won’t he come in? Why is he sending messages to you instead?”

      “He doesn’t feel it’s safe yet. He’s already been the victim of a setup, and he doesn’t trust anyone.”

      “Yeah, I understand that.” Sue bit her bottom lip. “What was the message? What are you supposed to do?”

      “Contact you?”

      “What? Why?”

      “He believes the people who kidnapped you belong to the same group he’s trying to bring down, the same group that he believes is planning some kind of spectacular attack.”

      Sue clenched the sheets in her fists. “Why does he think that?”

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